Ukiah: Diesel spill caused crash that closed North State Street

North State Street was closed in both directions for about half an hour Thursday morning after a driver hit a large diesel fuel slick in the road and hit a nearby pole, bringing down cable and phone lines, according to authorities.

The driver of a gray Nissan Sentra was coming around a curve at Parducci Road, "got caught up in a slippery substance" and hit an AT&T pole, according to California Highway Patrol spokesman officer Steve Krul. Authorities responded between 11 a.m. and 11:15 a.m., according to Ukiah Valley Fire District Operations Division Chief Kevin Jennings.

"You couldn't see it," Jennings said. He added that the rainfall and moisture on the road at the time may have made it harder for the driver to see the slick, but on closer inspection authorities saw a "pretty heavy sheen" on the road's surface.

Jennings estimated the slick was at least 500 feet long, stretching from Parducci Road to The Forks.

The Mendocino County Department of Transportation responded and spread sand on the slick to begin cleaning it up, according to department Director Howard Dashiell. He said workers followed a trail of what they're confident was diesel fuel from the industrial parking lot across State Street from where Parducci Road meets it south for more than 500 feet. Crews spread sand as far south as Lake Mendocino Drive, he said.

"What we think happened is that someone had a pail of diesel fuel in the back of their pickup, and as they left the industrial driveway it bounced and spilled," Dashiell said, adding that the department found a possible witness.

Jennings said the utility company responded to replace the damaged support pole and restore the communication lines.

Tiffany Revelle can be reached at udjtr@ukiahdj.com, on Twitter @TiffanyRevelle or at 468-3523.